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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · nail · bat · rest · kid · bowl

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. pound — a weight
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. kid — child
  17. rest — a break
  18. bowl — a dish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com